Working with Butterick 5464 blouse that only has a large dart located on the front shoulder seam. While I've altered other patterns to allow for the D cup fit, I've never worked with a pattern with only the dart in that location. How should I proceed to add the bust fullness that is needed?

I'd take the coward's way out. Slash the pattern in your usual side dart position, then close up the shoulder dart; that will open the side dart. Make your customary changes, then reverse the process: close up the side dart to force the shoulder dart to open. Naturally, you'd want to do all this messing around on a traced pattern piece, not the original.

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Quote: I'd take the coward's way out. Slash the pattern in your usual side dart position, then close up the shoulder dart; that will open the side dart. Make your customary changes, then reverse the process: close up the side dart to force the shoulder dart to open. Naturally, you'd want to do all this messing around on a traced pattern piece, not the original.

Wow, that's brilliant. And I love your example of how to be a "coward."

Quote: Karla Kizer I'd take the coward's way out. Slash the pattern in your usual side dart position, then close up the shoulder dart; that will open the side dart. Make your customary changes, then reverse the process: close up the side dart to force the shoulder dart to open. Naturally, you'd want to do all this messing around on a traced pattern piece, not the original.

Exactly what Karla described. I would only consider to make multiple smaller shoulder darts instead of a large one.

I wouldn't add to a large dart, but rather add a second dart. IF you want to move some of that large dart to the second dart, than draw a line through one of the dart legs to the bust point and do the same from the second dart. Slice to the point from each dart and move the legs until you get a more equal distribution between the two darts. You can also rotate a side dart to the vertical position and move it to the lower front then connecting the two you can make a shoulder princess seam which is easier to fit than two large darts and has the benefit of creating a slimming vertical line.

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